Tuesday, June 12, 2007

Did you just say Wal-Mart?

My mom just went on a roadtrip to Texas and Nebraska in the camper she and my stepdad got a year or two back. I had visions of them stopping at KOAs every night, swapping stories and a cold one with fellow campers.

The reality was a bit different.

I called mom a couple of times on the cell phone she carries but rarely uses. The first time I called her up, she could barely hear me over the beeps and whirrs of the slot machines around her. They drove 700 miles and stopped at a casino for a "relaxing" four hours. Then they slept in the camper, which they parked in the casino parking lot, and hit the buffet the next morning.

I can't make this stuff up.

But it gets better. I called her another time when she was able to hear me better and she told me that for 10 days or so, they only spent about $250 on campground fees because they stopped for the night more than once in a Wal-Mart parking lot. Apparently, this is becoming accepted practice amongst the RV crowd and it makes sense from a business standpoint. For the inconvenience of having a rush on the bathrooms in the morning, Wal-Mart has a crowd waiting when it opens its doors. Crazy. Crazy like a fox…on both sides. Wal-Mart makes money, travelers save money. Not exactly communing with nature, but a memorable experience nonetheless.

I must confess, I sort of wish I was along for the ride (at least for a day).

1 comment:

Unknown said...

I can't even imagine what a Wal-Mart parking lot in the center of Manhattan would look like after dark...at least out of towners would have place to sleep besides Central Park should we have another black-out.

A sampling of my books